I’m a lover of a good cover…

The tale of how New Order’s Blue Monday came to be is one of hallucinogens, flatulence and a happy accident that went on to become iconic.

It all started when the band (previously Joy Division), still recovering from the tragic death of former frontman Ian Curtis in 1980, briefly moved to New York to experiment with new sounds and technology in front of a fresh audience.

The result shifted the band away from their post-punk roots towards a contemporary, electronic, dance–oriented sound that was becoming popular at the time thanks to the influence of bands like Kraftwork.

With Bernard Sumner at the helm and with the recruitment of keyboardist Gillian Gilbert, New Order released their first album, “Movement”, in 1981 to much acclaim.

However, it was a single released in the run up to their second record that became New Order’s definitive track and etched them into musical history forever – Blue Monday.

‘Blue Monday’, despite being the title, is never actually mentioned in the song and according to drummer Stephen Morris, derives from Kurt Vonnegut’s 1973 novel ‘Breakfast of Champions, or Goodbye Blue Monday’. Bass player, Peter Hook has another theory however. “I was reading about Fats Domino. He had a song called Blue Monday, and it was a Monday, and we were all miserable, so I thought, ‘Oh, that’s quite apt.’”
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The song is often associated with themes of an abusive relationship, although Peter Hook once acknowledged that Sumner was under the influence of LSD when crafting the words, later going on to say, “I don't think there is a great deal to tell behind the lyrics if I am going to be brutally honest!”